At least two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators were marshalled out and bottles containing black paint, which AAP MLAs alleged were also laced with acid, were recovered from their possession with Speaker Ram Niwas Goel announcing that he would ensure their disqualification from the membership of the House as another day was underlined by stormy proceedings in the Delhi Legislative Assembly Wednesday. BJP MLA from Gandhi Nagar Anil Bajpai and Vishwas Nagar legislator Om Prakash Sharma were marshalled out at Goel’s directions after they marched up to the Speaker’s chair demanding a discussion on issues ranging from air pollution to the state of the Yamuna. During the course of the day, an attempt was also made by BJP's Rohini MLA Vijendra Gupta to rebut issues raised by AAP legislators regarding the alleged interference of Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Vinai Kumar Saxena in the Delhi government’s functioning in addition to that of the Municipal Corporation. When AAP MLA from Rithala, Mohinder Goyal, produced Rs 15 lakh in cash, which he alleged was given by local strongmen to “arrange” the appointment of nursing staff at a hospital, Delhi BJP working president Virendra Sachdeva termed the development “drama” to escape a discussion on “the actual issues” confronting the city. Leader of Opposition Ramvir Singh Bidhuri also said, “There is a doubt in the mind of the public that if an attempt was being made to bribe the MLA, why did he not catch the accused red-handed at the same time?” He further said, “After all, how did the bribe amount remain with the MLA? Did the bribe givers forcefully give the bribe or is there some other issue? If bribery is going on in Delhi government hospitals, it only reveals the incompetence of (Deputy CM) Manish Sisodia. That's why a CBI inquiry should be conducted into the whole matter.” Said Sachdeva, “The hospital against which the MLA is making allegations belongs to the Delhi government and if the service provider there is making irregularities in appointments, the entire health system of the Arvind Kejriwal government is under question.” Earlier, pointing at the bottles recovered from BJP members, AAP's Greater Kailash MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj said: “Whatever is in these bottles, we will get it checked; how dare they bring black paint mixed with acid to the Assembly?” In response to the allegations made against the L-G with regard to the MCD’s functioning – especially the appointment of aldermen prior to mayoral polls on January 6 - Gupta argued that the very first page of the Delhi Municipal Corporation (DMC) Act establishes that the MCD is an autonomous, parallel municipal government. “The Special Officer, the pro-tem Speaker, the aldermen — all the appointments were made according to the law as per the L-G’s prerogative. If you really believe that this is not the case, why haven’t you (the AAP) gone to court against these yet?” he asked. Gupta asked Sisodia to assure the House that AAP MLAs would not engage in a ruckus during the mayoral polls which have now been scheduled on January 24. In reply, Sisodia said AAP legislators would do whatever it takes to uphold the Constitutional functioning of the MCD House, adding they were willing “to be beheaded” if it came to protecting the Constitution. Bidhuri demanded the immediate release of pension to 3.5 lakh elderly people in the city who, he alleged, had been waiting for it for the last five years. “Pension is the only financial support for poor elders.but by not accepting new pension applications, the Delhi government has taken away their right to live a respectable life,” he said.
